“Shocking” and “successful surprise” are the terms used by the international press in the first reports about the presidential elections in Romania. BBC, The Guardian, France 24, The Associated Press, Reuters and AFP characterized Călin Georgescu as “a pro-Russian candidate” and a “surprise” that produced “an earthquake” in the electoral landscape in Romania.
“A far-right populist surprises in the presidential elections in Romania, going to enter the second round”, writes The Associated Press (AP) agency about Călin Georgescu, specifying at the time of the news transmission that he will probably face Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in the round two. It is “a result that shook the political landscape of the country”, adds AP, taken over by News.ro.
“A little-known far-right populist won the presidential elections in Romania, electoral data show, and will probably face the left-wing Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in the second round, in two weeks, a result that shook the country's political landscape .
Georgescu, 62 years old, ran as an independent candidate and was not very well known. He surpassed most of the local polls, causing a shock wave in the Romanian political environment while climbing to the top”, writes AP, taken over by News.ro.
France 24: a pro-Russian candidate managed a surprise
France 24 notes that “a pro-Russian candidate and the prime minister will face each other in the second round” of the presidential elections in Romania and mentions that Georgescu owes his score to the viral campaign on TikTok.
“A pro-Russian candidate pulled off a surprise in the first round of the presidential elections in Romania. On Sunday, November 24, Călin Georgescu ranked first in the first round of the presidential elections in Romania, ahead of pro-European Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu.
After counting 98.66% of the ballots, Călin Georgescu obtained 22.59% of the votes, compared to 19.55% for Marcel Ciolacu. If this trend continues, the two men will face each other in a second round of voting scheduled for December 8, meanwhile the parliamentary elections will take place in a week.
Călin Georgescu owes his score to a TikTok campaign that went viral, focused on the need to stop aid to Ukraine,” France24 mentions.
The Guardian: Shock in Romania
“Shock in Romania: Călin Georgescu, the far-right critic of NATO, takes the lead in the presidential elections”, headlined The Guardian after Sunday's vote.
“Georgescu, who called NATO's anti-ballistic missile shield a “disgrace of diplomacy”, will probably face the leftist Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in the second round.
A little-known far-right populist took the lead in Romania's presidential election on Sunday, according to election data, and is likely to face left-wing Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in a runoff two weeks from now, a result that has shaken the political landscape of the country”, mentions The Guardian.
BBC, on the presidential elections in Romania: “Shocking”
“A far-right candidate shockingly leads in the presidential election in Romania”, notes the BBC.
A far-right, pro-Russian politician has taken a surprising lead in the first round of Romania's presidential election, with preliminary results placing his pro-European rival in second place.
The solid result of Georgescu, who does not have his own party and campaigned largely on the social media platform TikTok, was the biggest surprise of the election. He is now about to face Ciolacu in the final for the presidency on December 8.
This would represent a dilemma for the millions of Romanians who voted for other candidates.
One option would be to support the populist social-democrat Ciolacu, an establishment figure who would continue Romania's pro-Western path.
The support of Georgescu, who promised Romania's sovereignty, is the alternative. Georgescu, who does not belong to any party, has also vowed to end what he calls servility towards the European Union and NATO, particularly with regard to support for Ukraine. He condemned NATO's anti-missile ballistic shield at Deveselu”, comments bbc.com.
AFP: Electoral earthquake in Romania
Initially credited with a big lead in exit polls, the 56-year-old social democratic leader saw his far-right rival, 62-year-old Călin Georgescu, advance later in the evening . After counting 90% of the ballots, the first got 21.1% of the votes, and the second about 22%. If this trend is confirmed, the two politicians will face off in a second round of voting scheduled for December 8, meanwhile parliamentary elections will be held in a week.
Elena Lasconi, the center-right mayor of a small town in the center of the country, is currently in third place with 16.6% of the votes, ahead of the nationalist candidate George Simion (14.5%).
Regardless of the result of the vote, “the extreme right is by far the big winner of these elections”, commented political analyst Cristian Pîrvulescu for AFP. The extreme right obtained more than a third of the votes. According to experts, it benefited from a tense social and geopolitical climate in a country seen as a loyal member of the EU and NATO, located at the gates of Ukraine. It is an upheaval for this country of 19 million inhabitants, which has so far resisted nationalist posts, differentiating itself from Hungary and Slovakia, AFP comments.
On television, reports the French news agency, the commentators were perplexed by this turn of events, while at the same time remaining cautious while waiting for the final count. Ciolacu, who had previously thanked his voters for a “clear” result, did not speak again.
Lasconi, a 52-year-old former journalist turned politician, urged caution. “The scores are very close, it's not time to celebrate yet,” she said, although she believed she had qualified for the second round.
On the extreme right, the leader of the AUR party, George Simion, has already congratulated his opponent, declaring himself delighted that a “sovereignist” is in the second round. With his passionate, mystical and conspiratorial speech, 38-year-old Simion, a big fan of Donald Trump, was considered one of the favorites. But, although he knew how to capitalize on the suffering of a part of the population impoverished by high inflation, he also wanted to project an image of a moderate, which “did him a disservice in the case of the most radical”, says Pîrvulescu.
On the other hand, Georgescu has won people over in recent days with a viral TikTok campaign focused on the need to stop aid to Ukraine. “Tonight, the Romanian people cried out for peace. And they shouted very loud, extremely loud”, he reacted.
After ten years in power, Klaus Iohannis, a staunch supporter of Kiev, has become extremely unpopular, especially because of his expensive trips abroad financed by public money, so Romanians have set their sights on anti-establishment candidates amid the rise of ultraconservative movements in Europe, explains AFP.
Cristian Pîrvulescu predicts that, supported by its good results in the presidential elections, the extreme right would benefit from “a contagion effect” in the parliamentary elections on December 1. This portends difficult negotiations for the formation of a coalition. The social democrats, the heirs of the former communist party that structured the political life of the country for more than three decades, currently govern in coalition with the liberals of the PNL.
Reuters: Călin Georgescu, a critic of NATO
A right-wing NATO critic and left-wing Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu are tied after the first round of Sunday's presidential election, according to partial vote counts, a shock result that threatens Romania's staunchly pro-Ukraine position, Reuters also writes.
After counting almost 90% of the votes, Călin Georgescu, aged 62, was at 22%, while Ciolacu had 21.7%.
However, ballots from the sizable Romanian diaspora, which were not included in the main count, showed centre-right politician Elena Lasconi, 52, in first place with 33.4%, and Georgescu on second.
Romania's president has a semi-executive role that gives him control over defense spending – likely a difficult issue as Bucharest comes under pressure to maintain NATO spending targets during Donald Trump's second term Trump as president of the USA, while trying to reduce a high fiscal deficit, notes Reuters.
Lasconi told her supporters, after the publication of exit polls that gave her a small lead over Georgescu, with Ciolacu in first place, that she is optimistic about entering the second round. “But, as you can see, the results are very tight, let's wait for tomorrow's results to be happy,” urged Lasconi cautiously.
The campaign focused largely on the high cost of living, with Romania having the highest proportion of people at risk of poverty in the EU, Reuters reports.
Georgescu is a former prominent member of the far-right party Alliance for the Union of Romanians. In 2021, he called NATO's anti-missile shield at Deveselu a “disgrace of diplomacy” and declared that the North Atlantic Alliance would not protect any of its members if they were attacked by Russia, Reuters notes.
Lasconi, a former journalist, joined the Save Romania Union (USR) in 2018 and became the head of the party this year. She believes in increasing defense spending and helping Ukraine, and polls suggest that she would defeat Ciolacu in a possible second round of voting.
“It will be a close confrontation, with the social-democratic leader more vulnerable to the negative campaign due to the fact that he is an acting prime minister,” said political commentator Radu Magdin.
Note: The percentages indicated in the news of foreign agencies were valid at the time of transmission of the news on their feeds. Real-time election results can be viewed here
Publisher: BE
